Dundonnell Mountain Rescue brings two teenagers safely home after getting stuck on An Teallach

Two teenagers were rescued after becoming trapped in severe winter conditions on a mountain in the Highlands.

The alarm was raised at around 10.30pm on Monday when the boys realised they were stuck in waist-high snow on An Teallach as conditions rapidly deteriorated.

Dundonnell Mountain Rescue Team were called out to a bluff near the Loch Toll an Lochan area.

The team said that both teenagers were “well-equipped and made the correct decision to call for help early, a factor that proved crucial to the successful outcome”.

Both casualties were rescued following a nine-hour operation.

A parent of one of the boys described the fear they experienced while the rescue was under way.

She said: “I was called at 10.30pm by my son to say that he and his friend were not able to make it off the hill as conditions had worsened. They were waist-deep in snow, stuck on a bluff and couldn’t see where to go.

“It is hard to describe how scary it is to have your son and his friend up a hill in such treacherous conditions.

“We waited for hours with some of the team, desperate for any information on how the rescue was going, and fully aware that the volunteers out there were having to struggle through the same awful conditions.

“Nine hours later, the team and the boys were thankfully back with us, safe and sound. The relief was overwhelming, mixed with the horror of what could have been.”

The parent said the incident highlighted how dependent rescues are on conditions allowing teams to operate safely.

“What was really brought home to us was that if the conditions had been impossible, no rescue would have happened. That is just too difficult to contemplate.

“Dundonnell Mountain Rescue Team were absolutely brilliant, and we are so lucky to have you. A huge thank you from the bottom of our hearts. The boys will be doing some very important fundraising in the near future.”